LOVE AT FIRST BITET

By Sheldon Landwehr

The Chinese restaurant  Lai Toh Heen is handsomely appointed in a milimist elegant motif.  It likewise has the added advantage of space for 120 patrons appealingly divided into small rooms and a balcony.  It is one of the few Chinese restaurants that is softly lit, quiet and arranged to allow some privacy between its starched cloth covered tables.  Service at Lai Toh Heen, particularly on crowded peak evening hours is surprisingly  prompt and efficient.

Although there are unusual menu choices among its Cantonese offerings such as Peking duck which emerges at the top of its game, but it's the incredibly exquisite  dim sum creations which doesn't appear on many Toronto menus that grabbed most of our attention. You must try the sizzling hot, deep-fried delicately refined and fragantly spiced  lobster roll enhanced with fresh mango.  Other ethereal offerings include Smokey enriched  bacon wrapped giant prawn and scallop roll, steamed dumplings divinely stuffed with foie gras,  crystal shrimp dumpling, Siu-Mai brisling with pork and shrimp crowned by a scallop.  Dim Sum morsels also embrace such singular wonders as crunchy crisp Tofu Brick crammed with soft, silky-smooth crabmeat, shrimp and mushrooms, fashioned like an ice cream pop, and the best of the best sticky rice wrapped in a lotus leaf combining tasteful meats and seafood.  Finish with the sweet pastry known as custard tart which  is another standout.

Lai Toh Heen, 692 Mount Pleasant Road, Toronto, Canada.  Telephone: 416 489 8922.  Valet parking dinner only.  Lunch and dinner Tuesday to Sunday. Dim Sum $3 to $12; entrees $16 to $42.  Accepts reservations and major credit cards.

 

PRESCRIBED EATING

By Sheldon Landwehr

WELCOME TO OUR CITY GUIDE: TORONTO GUIDE 2007

TORONTO'S RESTAURANT SCENE

District: Downtown

FRAN'S RESTAURANT....Both branches of FRAN'S are invitingly appointed. They are wildly popular for award winning burgers, apple pies, rice puddings, salad dressings, being open 24 hours and for the memories shared by its patrons and staff. Few restaurants have been able to say that they have stood the test of time having been operateing consistently for over 65 years--a stalwart tradition since 1940. Visit Fran's web-site at www.fransrestauarant.com . Located at 200 Victoria St. 416-304-0085, and 20 College Street 416-923-9867.

SIX STEPS RESTAURANT & LOUNGE…At Six Steps the formula is quite simple. Six steps to incomparability. 1. Incredible food. 2. Sophisticated Wine List. 3. Exceptional Service. 4. Distinctive Décor. 5. Alluring Ambiance. 6. A Je Ne Sais Quoi. The Menu offers plenty to make the mouth water. Try appetizers such as the Grilled Black Tiger Shrimp and Entrees like the Pan Seared Artic Char with Nova Scotia lobster. Located at 55 Colborne Street. 416-504-4800. Or visit www.sixstepsrestaurant.com .

IRISH EMBASSY PUB & GRILL…Located in the heart of the Financial District, and minutes away from the Entertainment orb, The Irish Embassy Pub and Grill is renowned as being one of Toronto's best destinations for exceptional homemade food. They offer a large selection of draft beers and cocktails. Set in a magnificent old bank building built in 1873, this upscale Irish Pub is a popular venue for business lunches and parties, and is also a favorite with the after-work crowd and the pre-game rush. Located at 49 Young Street. 416-866-8282. Or visit www.irishembassypub.com .

P.J. O'Brien IRISH PUB & RESTAURANT…Toronto may be a bit short on Irish pubs, but P.J O'Brien's Irish Pub and Restaurant helps fill the gap. The upstairs Fireplace Bar is a great venue for any type of party or event. Tucked away behind the King Edward Hotel, this charming Irish pub is conveniently situated close to the ACC, Hummingbird Center and other major attractions. They offer traditional pub fare, but the best of the dishes are the Irish specialties, accompanied by a premium selection of draft beers, wines and spirits. Every Friday and Saturday from 9pm, they have live bands playing a selection of traditional Celtic and contemporary music. For more information visit www.pjobrien.com.com .
Located at 39 Colborne Street. 416-815-7562.

TOM JONES STEAKHOUSE…Approaching this historic 1800 building with its distinctive hand carved oak entranceway you enter into an intimate, elegant setting. Soft lighting from natural gas burning chandeliers, leaded glass windows and high oak paneling - a combination of extraordinary charm, warmth, friendliness and relaxation. Tom Jones Steakhouse has been an institution in Toronto since 1966. With an impressive menu of steak and seafood specialties, an award-wining wine list and amiable, effective staff, provides a dining experience that will be enjoyed, savored, and remembered long after your party has become a cherished memory. In short, both the mood and the food succeed at Tom Jones. Located at 17 Leader Lane. 416-366-6583. Or visit www.tomjonessteakhouse.com .

District: The Beach

SHANANIGANS EATERY & TAPS…Beer lovers are advised to take notice of the unique selection of imported and draught beer's at this location. Shananigans boast the freshest dishes in the Beach area with a delightful patio to pass the time, as well as people watching.
Located at 1842 Queen St. E. Unit # 103. 416-693-2300.

MICHELLE'S BEACH HOUSE…Michelle's Beach House is the newest member of Michelle Gebharts expanding dining dynasty. Enter through the red and black facade to a pale teak and birch wood interior, walls arranged with black and white photos, and an eye-popping granite bar with comfy bar stools that is a must for a pre-dinner drink. The French menu includes such delights as Bouillabaisse, with traditional assorted fresh fish and shellfish and Foie de Veux, calves liver served on a bed of garlic mashed potatoes. Their 87 seat patio is very popular in the summer months. Located at 1955 Queen Street. 416-693-4454. Or visit www.michellesbeachhouse.ca .

GREEN EGGPLANT…The Green Eggplant is a favorite of people who like a casual yet upscale warm family restaurant with a fun menu. This eatery's claim to fame is such classics as excellent grilled sandwiches, supple pastas, burgers, fish and juicy steaks. The atmosphere is welcoming and the prices are affordable. Located at 1968 Queen Street. 416-913-3361.

District: Yorkville

HEMINGWAY'S RESTAURANT…Celebrating their 30 th year in business, this restaurant located in trendy Yorkville, offers a unique menu with the likes of Escargot and Spicy Thai Chicken. Hemingway's is equipped with 5 sought-after outdoor patios and boast 18 different beers on tap. Located at 142 Cumberland Street. 416-968-2828. Or visit www.hemingways.to .

CANTINE BISTRO & BAR…Developed by acclaimed restaurateur Joe Bersani, Cantine is an upscale restaurant with savory dishes. Among the favorites here are the Classic Crab Cakes, New York Strip Lion, and the Pan Seared filet of Atlantic Salmon. The décor changes monthly with a various artist featured in the dinning room. Located at 138 Avenue Road. 416-923-4822. Or visit www.cantine.ca .

IL POSTO…This pleasant, classy restaurant has considerably brightened Toronto's dining scene. And it's located in one of Toronto's most stylish shopping areas. Il Posto offers a warm atmosphere and is a great getaway from the local hustle. Treat yourself to such menu items as Vitello Tonnnato or the Fettuccine Con Salmone. Servers are friendly and helpful.

Located at 148 Yorkville Avenue. 416-968-0469. www.Ilposto.ca .

District: St. Lawrence

HOT HOUSE CAFÉ…Famous for their award winning Sunday Brunch, Hot House Café is sure to delight with their everyday fresh ingredients. The menu specializes in thin crust pizza's, seafood, delegate and fragrant rack of Lamb, and generous amounts of succulent steak. The fare is complimented by a wine list that is sensibly priced and smart. You may also want to try their exceptional Martini's. Located at 35 Church Street. 416-366-7800. www.hothousecafe.com .

District: Entertainment

EAST!…Awarded “Best Restaurant Design”, by Canadian Interiors Magazine, East offers a wide range of Oriental Cuisine. Popular favorites include All Day Dim Sum, Asian Street Food, and a combination of Thia and Chinese delectable dishes. East has evolved into a trendy destination delivering first class Martini's in an easy to get to locale. Dine on the beautiful patio, or reserve a private party room. East! Is just steps from the Osgoode subway station and located at 240 Queen St. W. 416-351-3278.

District: Chinatown

BRIGHT PEARL…Located in the heart of Toronto's Chinatown beside Kensington Market, Bright Pearl Seafood Restaurant offers exciting and exotic comestibles that is sure to please. The fish tank at the front, home to live lobster, Vancouver crabs and bass, is a model of freshness. This is truly a seafood lover's haven. Another high-point here is the production and serving of Peking duck, indeed a flashy sight to behold. Other specialties include Jumbo Shrimp with Vegetable and lip-puckering Crispy Lemon Chicken. Located at 346-348 Spadina Ave. 416-979-3988.

District: The Distillery

The Boiler House…Offering a contemporary Canadian menu, this award winning restaurant, very much in vogue, is located in a breath taking industrial chic setting has been voted as Toronto's best venue for live Blues and Jazz. The Boiler House seats up to 700 persons and is available for private parties. For more information visit their extensive web-site at www.boilerhouse.ca . Located at 55 Mill Street. 416-203- 2121

District: The Esplanade

THE OLD SPAGHETTI FACTORY…Originally a Blacksmith Shop, built in 1898, this huge old warehouse was converted into a 600 seat restaurant in 1971, filled with a fabulous collection of antiques and truly unique artifacts and is now known as the famous "Old Spaghetti Factory." Enjoy their numerous spaghetti dishes and other Italian favorites. Needless to say, The Old Spaghetti Factory has a large and loyal following. Located at 54 The Esplanade. 416-864-9761. www.oldspaghettifactory.net .

District: Rosedale

1055 RESTAURANT…Touted as Toronto's new big thing in culinary art, 1055 promises to make your dinning experience a memorable one. It's best just to relax and enjoy the visually stunning dishes that are served with care and the taste does not disappoint. Try the half roasted Duck or the Blue Crab and fish salad. Servers are reliable guides to the quality and specialties of the evening's offerings. Located at 1055 Yonge Street. 416-482-8485. www.1055.ca.

SPRING ROLLS…Spring Rolls is Toronto's most celebrated chain of restaurants with 5 locations proffering pleasing environments and a consistently remarkable array of adventures in exotic cuisine's, along with service that is prompt and efficient. Indulge your senses with a unique take on Thai, Chinese, and Vietnamese cooking. Spring Rolls is found at the following locations:

40 Dundas St. W
416-585-2929

85 Front St. E
416-365-3649

45 Eglinton Ave. E
416-322-7655

693 Younge St
416-972-7655

5100 Erin Mills PKWY
905-607-7655

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Toronto was easy to reach via Air Canada's non-stop New York to Toronto run for the People's Comedy Festival, an annual event organized by Mark Breslin, who runs a chain of popular comedy clubs called Yuk-Yuk's. A limo picked us up at the airport and brou ght us to the door of our destination, the Sutton Plaza Hotel, and we settled into a posh suite. The festival held over 60 comedy events, which loosely translates into a few thousand laughs, at various venues around town.

But with or without the festival, Toronto is an engaging city--the ninth largest in North America--where each neighborhood has its own character. More than 80 different ethnic groups have made their home here. A natural first stop was the top of the CN Tower, a soaring edifice that offers a panoramic view of the city and the vast expanse of Lake Ontario. Now we could honestly say we had seen everything.

Toronto appears to offer something for everyone. Sports fans can catch the Blue Jays or the Argonauts at the SkyDome, or visit the Hockey Hall of Fame. Shoppers can enjoy the elegant emporia of Bloor/Yorkville, or browse the boutiques of Queen Street or the open-air markets selling everything from food to antiques. Lovers of the arts will find world-class performances of music, opera, theatre, and dance almost every night, while history buffs can poke around the various museums, including the Holocaust E ducation and Memorial Centre and the Museum for Textiles, or visit some of the many historic buildings in and around the city.

Before showtime, we spent our first evening dining at the elegant Truffles, in the Four Seasons Hotel. This muted room is immaculate in mahogany, with oil paintings and gleaming copper pots on the walls, the ceiling is slated and beamed. Seating is at h igh-backed apostle chairs or banquettes, comfortable as clouds. The well-appointed, candle-lit tables are clad in crisp white linen and decked with fresh flowers. The service is formal. Here you can dine at considerable expense, and the quality of the pr ovender, Continental in character, reflects the prices charged. The fare? Oh, just about anything in the universe, from dill blinis and applewood-smoked salmon, to breast of quail wrapped in shredded potatoes, to the eye-catching cookstown greens (with pe eled tomatoes sliced and arranged like a basket, with verdicchio, pickled beets, and crisp potatoes, to spaghettini with black truffles, and grilled swordfish steak served with cous-cous, to chicken breast with corn blinis, and glazed sweetbreads.

The separate dessert and after-dinner wine menu lists several temptations such as an assortment of sherbets in fruit shells with chocolate chopsticks, macadamia nut and ginger tart with a rum chocolate brownie and coconut sherbet, and Grand Marnier, choc olate, or iced tequila souffles.

We then went on to the John Bassett Theatre for a gala evening of comedy, hosted by Canadian comedian James Carrey, star of "In Living Color," which was being shot for broadcast on Fox Television.

Lunch next day was at The Senator, housed in a historic building that has been an eating-place for over 60 years. A favorite business haunt--the draped booths make for privacy. The menu here has an Italian accent. That evening, we caught Funny Gay Males at the Winter Garden Theatre. Gay they may have been, but especially funny they were not--from the name, I would have expected something exceeding the limits of outrageous. For dinner, we selected Nami, reputedly Toronto's best Japanese restaurant. There are private rooms, a long sushi bar, a robata grill, and tatami rooms, in addition to the tables flanked by wooden benches. The sushi was exquisite, sliced a little more thickly than we were used to, and the cooked dishes were also very palatable.

We spent a lively evening at Centro's, one of Toronto's hottest nightspots for the high and the mighty, dining on soft-shell crabs and deeply flavored peppered sweetbreads with polenta. The homemade onion and pesto bread is an imperative, and, if you lik e exotic pizzas, try their seafood variant. Swordfish steak and veal chop both arrived in gargantuan portions, well-cooked and tasty. There is a large selection of desserts and dessert wines, ports, liqueurs, etc.

At the Ontario Science Centre, we thoroughly enjoyed Yakov Smirnoff. Raised in Russia, he came under censorship from the "Department of Jokes" and decided to emigrate to the U.S., where he has become very successful. His material has changed to reflect t he vast upheavals in his native land.

Next afternoon it was a hearty dim sum lunch at Young Lok, which translates as "Pride and Happiness." In a year, this restaurant serves over 250,000 customers--and, from our experience, none of them goes away hungry.

The rest of the afternoon was spent antique-shopping (well, window-shopping mostly) in Toronto's Antique Alley. Dinner was at the top-rated Corner House. Each of its five distinctive dining rooms holds only four tables, and the atmosphere is one of studi ed elegance. The menu, which changes daily, offers some very complex choices, including a complete vegetarian selection. Then we went on to the Danforth Music Hall to see Sandra Bernhard, who was well-received by the young, capacity crowd--but not by our AK crowd.

Next morning, it was Sunday brunch in our hotel dining room before heading for the Yorkville Avenue street fair, where the comedy festival had two stages, 30 or more performers, and a cold snap that could compete with cryonics. That night at the O'Keefe Centre we had the best time of all, plus the pleasure of meeting George Burns, a bona fide gent, in town performing his heart out for the festival and $125,000 Canadian. Other acts at other showplaces included Mort Sahl, Weird Al Yankovic, George Carlin, and Louie Anderson.

Next day's lunch was at Mother Tucker's, a rustic, family place near the airport serving uncomplicated American (sorry, Canadian!) fare such as steaks, seafood, chops, and burgers, along with a big, fresh, all-you-can-eat salad bar, a pasta bar, and a ro ast beef bar. A definite spot for hearty eaters, as well as kids, who have their own menu.

Overall impression of Toronto: an orderly city with something new (or old) around every corner.

TORONTO. The Four Season's other restaurant, Studio Cafe, has a more casual climate than the recently-awarded four-star Truffles, and lacks its hand-crafted charm. Nevertheless, its eclectic, variably priced menu is satisfactory, its young staff majoring in graciousness, even though overburdened by its popularity. Dishes such as pizzas are far out, the yeasty thin-crust spread with atypical toppings (we had potato slices on ours). Likewise try thinly sliced liver smothered in crispy bacon and onions; well-honed duck confit; succulent lamb chops, and richly flavored risotto and mushrooms. Thick made-to-order burgers paired with crunchy shoestring potatoes also deserve attention.

**Studio Cafe, Four Seasons-Toronto, 21 Avenue Rd., Toronto, Canada. (800) 332-3442. Breakfast, lunch, dinner 7 days. Popular priced. Accepts reservations and major credit cards.